CHAPTER 4: FINDINGS
4.3 F INDINGS OF THE Q UALITATIVE I NQUIRY
4.3.2 Findings from students’ perspectives at the FC and the COE
details noted below the tables.
4.3.2.1 RQ1. Do the pedagogical approaches practised in two colleges within a female federal university in the UAE promote the deep approach to learning in order to generate higher-order thinking and are there any differences between the two colleges?
There was an overwhelming confirmation from students that SCP is being applied to a large extent at both colleges. Table 4.15 below reveals the findings of the learning tasks applied by students for the constructs of DAL and SAL in relation to RQ1.
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Table 4. 15 Findings for Students in Response to RQ1
Learning Tasks FC COE
DAL
All said that they are actively engaged in class and are taught to use critical thinking, to apply learning and DAL approaches.
*Understanding, seeking meaning
All confirmed that faculty made great effort to help them achieve understanding.
Multiple-choice questions
Several said that critical analysis was required even for multiple-choice questions in their assessments.
**Application All confirmed that they are encouraged to and find opportunities to apply their learning in other contexts.
Group work All confirmed that group work is a regular part of their classes. Several participants said that sometimes they would discuss a topic in groups and then work on the assignment individually.
Research assignments
All confirmed that they had research assignments within their course where they needed to collect primary data and write a report on it. COE SP1 said, “Even if I know a topic, when I research it, I learn even more deeply.”
Extended research All said that this is not required of them and they used selected sections of their textbooks and provided learning resources.
Outcome-based curriculum
All confirmed that they had learning outcomes to achieve and that the learning outcomes were connected to their assessments.
Formative assessments
All confirmed that they are graded on both formative (about 75%) and summative (30%) assessments. Grading for the formative assessments is carried out throughout the year, which students commented helped them to work consistently instead of cramming at the end.
FC – Prior learning COE – Internship
All participants coming from the public schools said that what they learned in compulsory education was developed further. However, those coming from the private schools said most of the material was repeated.
Throughout the duration of the course, students do practicum—practical work. The course culminates in a six-month internship.
SAL
Faculty-centred Three student participants, FC SP2, SP4 and FC SFGP3, said that two faculty members (not FPs of this study) did not have good teaching skills and their lessons were boring.
Although most SPs confirmed that their course was taught using SCP, 11% said that some classes are entirely lectures. They thought this depended on the faculty and their style of teaching.
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Time constraints to completing syllabus
None said it was a constraint; at the COE several participants said they could complete unfinished activities the next day.
Overload of study materials
All student participants at both colleges explained that they are not required to study the entire textbook but are given sections of the textbook and additional learning resources. Assessments are confined to these materials.
Extended research All said that extended research is not required. However, they took their own initiative to research difficult topics online to enhance their understanding. Memorisation All student participants said that
they are encouraged to respond to assessment questions according to their understanding. However, all students concurred they used a mixture of memorisation and understanding.
All participants said that any
memorising is related to foundational facts. COE SP5 said that without understanding, just memorising a few facts is not of much use.
Heavy workload on students
Several students said that all their assignments and assessments needed to be submitted around the same time. This added a lot of work and stress. At the COE, additionally, completing their assignments along with meeting internships requirements was stressful.
Rubrics for grading
Most student participants said that the criteria on the rubric were challenging and many were anxious whether they could meet them.
Students at the COE said that they passed if they met the criteria on the rubrics for their internships and that it was only a pass or fail grade.
Further significant factors marked in the table above that added to the findings are expanded on below.
* Understanding: Seeking meaning and understanding appeared to be vigorously
pursued, as FC SP7 noted: “They don't let us leave the classroom without understanding.” COE SFGP2 explained that in her future teaching career, she will be dealing with children and not machines, so it is very important that they understand and analyse each situation and come up with solutions for that situation.
** Application: Students implied that they tried to find links between their study and life contexts. FC SP2 claimed, “I connect the subjects to things outside. I find this very exciting, an exciting way to learn.” While at the COE, respondents said that they had to apply their
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learning in their field visits at the schools and their internships. COE SFGP6 said, “When we come to these schools for our internship and we do it, it gives us a good idea on how to do it.” 4.3.2.2 RQ2. Is UAE Vision 2021 recognised amongst students as a driver of the deep approach to learning in the two colleges under study? The participants at both colleges were all aware of UAE Vision 2021 and knew that critical thinking and quantitative reasoning were important skills to achieve and were part of the vision. FC SP2 said, “Sheikh Mohammad is always saying that we have to be in first place, that we have to be creative, so often helps us” However, none knew the extent of the changes sought in depth.
They were also aware that, as nationals, they need to actively contribute to the development of their country.
As teachers in training, COE SP2 and all COE student FG participants expressed the view that they would like to contribute to their country by teaching the national children in the public schools. Now that they are equipped with new teaching methodologies, COE SFGP5 explained (and all others in the FGD agreed) that they feel better qualified to teach with the new student-centred approach to learning, and they would like to help with the implementation process. She added, “It is what Sheikh Mohammed is encouraging us to do, to give back to the public schools, and the Vision 2021 [is] about learning and teaching.”
4.3.2.3 RQ3. What are the major enablers and constraints to embracing the deep
approaches to learning during this period of transition? All participants at both colleges said that, in general, they found the way of learning in university different from what they were used to in school. Table 4.16 demonstrates the findings taken from the perspectives of students.
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Table 4. 16 Findings for Enablers and Constraints from Students’ Perspectives
FC COE
Enablers
New activity- based course at the FC and high pedagogic standards at the COE
The recently added Innovation and Entrepreneur course appeared to rank as a favourite amongst students.
Internships and regular practical assignments at the schools provided opportunities for knowledge and synthesis.
DAL yielding HOTS
All confirmed DAL is being encouraged and practiced by most faculty at both colleges. The classes keep them engaged and they find themselves developing HOTS.
Critique of faculty All confirmed that classes were stimulating and faculty sought to help them understand the content. Some critique of faculty is described below in the constraints section.
Summative in compulsory education vs. Formative in HE
All said they preferred the formative type of assessments. FC SP5 said that being tested throughout is a continual revision of content, opposed to the one summative assessment that tests the entire year's content at the end, which is stressful.
Research assignments
All said that they enjoyed the research assignments where they needed to collect primary data from the field, analyse and report them.
Constraints FC – Some courses are repeats from compulsory education SP1, SP4 and SFGP2 and SFGP4 said that some of the courses (most cited Emirates Studies, Global 2 and 3 and Arabic 2 and 3) were a repeat from compulsory education and were a waste of time and boring.
Several respondents at the COE said it would have helped them in their choice of major programme if they could have had one or two courses on education whilst at the FC.
FC – Large class sizes compromise quality
Most said that the class sizes were large, with about 30–32 students in each class. This made quality feedback and mentoring from faculty challenging. FC FGSPs also said that the quality of marking assessments might be compromised.
In recalling their time at the FC, COE students confirmed the same regarding large class sizes hindering quality feedback. The class numbers at the COE are smaller, and students see the
difference in the quality of mentoring and feedback they receive.
FC – Marking COE – Lack of internship opportunities at public schools
FC SFGPs expressed the view that the standard of the marking of assignments may be compromised. SFGP4 noted, “I submitted my essay one time online at 12:43 and at 12:50, the professor put the grade [up]. He took five minutes [to read] my paper and [grade] it."
All the COE student FG participants said that they would have liked to have had an opportunity to intern at a public school, as it would have given them added confidence.
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Language barrier All students transitioning from the public schools said that accessing DAL and adjusting to HE in general was a huge struggle due to lack of competency in the language of instruction in their university.
4.3.2.4 RQ4. Have other factors, such as pedagogic practice in compulsory education,
contributed towards the university students’ approaches to learning?
Two factors consistently surfaced amongst students at both colleges as hindering their
abilities to access HE at a higher level of competency. These are listed below.
4.3.2.4.1 From TCP to SCP. All students transitioning from public schools said that the pedagogic approach in compulsory education differed greatly from what they experience at the university. They claimed that the system of education in the public schools they attended was textbook-based, with an emphasis on memorising to pass exams and very little essay writing or connecting the concepts learned to other areas. FC SP2 and FC SFGP3 explained that in most public schools, they could get a booklet with seven to eight sample papers and most of the questions in their examinations were taken from these samples. FC SFGP3 said of the Innovation and Entrepreneur course: “I think there’s, like, a lot of frustration because the students are not used to having this creativity, and I kind of don't like that because I am not used to learning in that way.”
Many said it was a struggle initially to apply critical thinking or HOTS in their learning. They felt it was easier to be given paragraphs to memorise than to be asked to think beyond what was expected. This hindered their accessing DAL in their university education.
4.3.2.4.2 Proficiency in the language of instruction in HE. Most students at the federal universities transition from the Arabic-medium public schools, and the language barrier is a hurdle to overcome for most. In recounting her experience, FC SP4 said:
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When I graduated from the government school, all the English I knew was ‘Yes’ and ‘No,’ and some basic terms. Entering university, I was shocked. I find it challenging to deal with the material, how to understand it.
Students at the COE made similar comments in recollecting their experience of transferring to an English-medium university. COE SP2 said that it took a while to adjust to the direction of writing in the FC, as the writing goes from right to left in Arabic but the other way around in English. Their preparation in the Academic Bridge Program (ABP) was very helpful to them, but it was not enough to get to a level required in the HE programme. They added that it affected their understanding and their abilities to express themselves deeply for the assignments and activities.
4.3.2.5 RQ5. Is there a difference in the perception of change between students and
faculty in the two colleges under study and are there any differences between the two colleges? Table 4.17 shows the findings to RQ5 from the perspectives of students and faculty. Table 4. 17 Findings Relating to Comparative Perceptions of Faculty and Students
Construct Faculty Participants Student Participants Student-centred
pedagogy
All affirmative All affirmative
Lack of college readiness for students entering FC
FC faculty – All affirmative All affirmative at both colleges
Influence of SAL in public schools hampering accessing DAL in HE
All affirmative at both colleges
All affirmative at both colleges
Lack of English language proficiency for incoming students hindering accessing HOTS
All affirmative at both colleges
All affirmative at both colleges
Large classroom sizes hinder quality
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Repeating large amount of materials learned in compulsory education for some subjects
Not addressed and nothing mentioned by faculty
All of students said that some courses are not essential and are repeats of compulsory education
Some faculty not qualified to teach student-centred pedagogy
13% at the FC said that not all faculty are qualified to teach, even if they are academically highly qualified, unless they have teaching qualifications as well. 0% mentioned anything similar at COE
33% of SPs at the FC said that two faculty members (not participants of this study) did not teach using DAL. 13% at COE said that some faculty lectured only in some of the classes but did not imply that they did not use DAL approaches at other times
A new activity-based course at FC is rated as a favourite amongst students
26% affirmative All affirmative
Study overload 13% of respondents at the FC and 23% at the COE
mentioned that it is a demanding programme
All affirmed at both colleges that assignments being due all at the same time added a lot of stress and study overload
The data from the different methods for both faculty and students appear to indicate that both students and faculty have similar perceptions of the learning and teaching approaches used at these two colleges.
As this RQ leads to the comparing of data between the different sample sets, triangulation will be discussed and justified here.